


i think i have known you my whole life and loved you awhile longer

by bradbakshi



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: A little angst, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Dumb little gays, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Rest of the study group is mentioned but I didn’t want to tag them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:47:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25170364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bradbakshi/pseuds/bradbakshi
Summary: troy couldn’t find his soulmate. abed never even had one.
Relationships: Troy Barnes/Abed Nadir
Comments: 2
Kudos: 93





	i think i have known you my whole life and loved you awhile longer

It was unusual not to have a name printed on your skin. Of course there was the occasional late bloomer, someone who’s mark showed up later into adulthood rather than when they turned eighteen, but it was extremely rare.

The night before Troy’s eighteenth birthday, he set an alarm for 12:01. He wanted to know as soon as possible who his soulmate was. When he woke up, though, and saw the name Ethan on his wrist, he freaked out. His soulmate was a dude? Since when did he like dudes? He pushed everytime he thought of his football teammates in a weird way to the back of his mind and pulled his sleeve down.

Good thing he was up early because he didn’t want anyone to find out about his soulmate being another boy. He stayed up the rest of the night (morning?) wondering what he would do. 

When Troy’s parents were awake, they were excited to see who his soulmate was, but he just kept his sleeves secured and snuck off into the bathroom. He searched through the cabinets looking for whatever makeup product his mom used on her face. He pulled out a bottle of foundation and assumed that it was the same color as him. After all, he was often told that he looked like his mother. 

He squirted the foundation onto his wrist and rubbed it in with his fingers until the name was invisible. That would work. He washed his hands and his face after flushing the toilet so that no one would get suspicious. Before leaving the bathroom, he put on a frown so that it would be believable when he told his parents that he didn’t get his soulmate mark.

His parents were waiting for him in the kitchen, sitting at the dining table with their hands entwined. They looked expectant, but then concerned seeing their son’s demeanor.

“Mom? Dad?” He started softly, feeling his bottom lip wobble, not as a part of his act, but because he just didn’t feel right about his soulmate being a dude, or for keeping it a secret.

“Yeah, baby?” His mom answered, frowning now too.

Troy didn’t say anything. He opted instead to pull his sleeves up, showing them his wrists, seemingly free of any mark. His mom gasped, and his dad stayed blank faced.

She got up quickly and pulled Troy in for a hug. She patted his head and shushed him soothingly as he cried into her shoulder. “It’s okay, baby, it’ll come soon. It’ll come soon.” 

Hearing that made Troy cry harder, and soon there was another pair of arms wrapped around him. He felt guilty for lying to his parents, but he knew he was doing the right thing.

-

Abed was more anxious than excited to see what his soulmate’s name was. How would he find a person he didn’t already know by just their first name? What if the person couldn’t deal with him, despite being his soulmate? What if he was a “late bloomer”? What if he didn’t have a soulmate at all and disappointed his father even further? There were so many questions and possibilities and he had to wait for answers. 

When he woke up, a legal adult, he shot upright, checking his wrists. There was nothing. He had considered this possibility so many times that he was sure he wouldn’t be affected if it actually happened. That was why he was surprised by how much it hurt to see his prediction was correct. He stared at his wrist for a moment, knowing that it was impossible, but still hoping that a name- any name- would appear. It didn’t though, and he wasn’t surprised.

He glanced at the alarm clock (it was a replica of the one from Groundhog Day that he got on his 15th birthday) on his bedside table and saw that he should’ve been brushing his teeth two minutes ago. He let his sleeve fall down to cover his naked wrist as he got up and made his bed. By the time he was done with his routine and walked into the kitchen, his dad was already sitting at the table with a cup of coffee.

Abed didn’t say anything as he poured a bowl of Lucky Charms. His dad didn’t either until he was sat down and eating.

“Well, son?”

“What?” Abed knew what he was asking about.

“Who’s your soulmate?”

“I don’t have one.”

“I see.”

With that, the conversation was over. They sat in silence and while Abed was still eating his cereal, his dad left without a word. This was another scenario he had run through, and it was another reality that left him more upset than he should be.

-

Meeting Abed was strange. Not bad, strange, but strange in a way that Troy knew he was different from the rest of the study group. Well, obviously he was different in the sense that he wasn’t like other people- he didn’t know how to explain it. All Troy knew was that Abed made him feel weird.

Abed was furrowed eyebrows, crooked grins, and finger guns. He was awkward gestures, effortless and smooth impressions. He didn’t think so, but he was cool. Really cool. That’s coming from a guy who’s whole high school personality was “cool.” The truth was, though, that Troy definitely wasn’t as cool as Abed.

Troy came to terms with his sexuality a while ago. It took him a lot longer to realize that he probably either a) wouldn’t meet his soulmate for a long time or b) he wouldn’t meet him at all. It sucked, and he definitely cried a lot, but he pushed the thought of whoever Ethan was to the back of his mind and reminded himself that love wasn’t all he needed to be happy.

He lived by that until he and Abed became closer. At first, the study group calling them a couple was funny because they didn’t see each other that way. Soon though, they were holding hands and even cuddling sometimes during sleepovers. Troy told himself that they were just destroying their toxic masculinity and reaching new levels of friendships, but one day when Jeff asked him where his boyfriend was, he didn’t laugh. He didn’t tell Jeff to stop joking around either. Instead, he answered without hesitation that Abed was in the library.

It wasn’t until Jeff raised an eyebrow at him and stayed silent for a beat that Troy realized. He basically just called Abed his boyfriend. He laughed awkwardly until Jeff left and then started to think. He thought of all the times his chest fluttered whenever Abed would just grab his hand casually. All the times his face felt warm and his shoulders felt light when Abed suggested a pillowfort sleepover. Suddenly, he was eighteen again realizing that he liked guys. He didn’t even think about his actual soulmate until he realized that he liked- liked Abed. 

The name on his wrist didn’t cross his mind until after he admitted to himself that he liked his best friend. Suddenly, the euphoria was gone and he was left feeling guilty. How could he fall in love with someone that wasn’t his soulmate? What if he lived his life happily with Abed while his actual soulmate lived theirs wondering why they never got their happy ending? He shook his head before putting it down on the table, frustrated. 

He must not have heard him come in because suddenly, Abed was sitting next to him and asking him what was wrong. Troy looked up and made a face. Why did Abed have to show up while he was having a meltdown over him? 

“I’m in love with someone who isn’t my soulmate.” Troy didn’t want to lie, but he also didn’t want to confess his feelings right after figuring out that he has them. Abed tilted his head slightly, eyebrows furrowed. He paused for a moment, probably working out the best thing to say. Troy couldn’t help but think he looked really cute- No. No, his brain is not doing this to him right now.

“Cool. I’m pretty sure you’re upset about it, though. Why?” Abed asked, confused.

Troy laughed dryly. “Dude, I have a soulmate. But I’m in love with someone else. Why wouldn’t I be upset?”

“Coming from someone who doesn’t have one at all, I don’t think that a mark on your skin dictates who you’ll end up with.” He said. “I like someone too, I think, but they’re obviously not who I was destined to be with or whatever.”

“That’s still different. I have someone who’s waiting for me. You don’t.” Troy snapped, and instantly, he felt terrible. Abed didn’t react at first, keeping the same confused look until he processed what was said and his mouth shifted into a slight frown.

“I didn’t mean that.” 

“No, you’re right. For me, it’s simple. I won’t get a happy ending with the person I was made to be with. That’s a fact. For you, it’s different. You have someone picked out for you, your perfect match, but you’re conflicted because there’s someone else. You can’t decide between choosing to do something that makes you happy, or following the path that was made for you.” 

Troy felt his gut twist at the fact that Abed believed what he was saying was true. How could he think that just because he didn't have a soulmate mark, there wasn’t someone made for him?

“Abed, man. Stop. There’s someone for you.”

He looked confused again. “You’re agreeing with what I said.”

“What? No, I’m not.” Troy shook his head, wondering what he was talking about. Abed looked at him for a minute.

“I don’t have a soulmate mark, but you’re saying there’s someone for me. That means that even though we can choose to trust our fates, we can also make our own decisions and fall in love with whoever we want. Why can’t it be the same for you?” 

Troy groaned. “I want it to be, but I can’t just leave my soulmate hanging, dude.” 

“You wouldn’t be. Do whatever makes you happy, Troy. Your soulmate would want that.” Abed said, and even though he had the same monotone expression as always, Troy found himself being comforted by it and his words. He smiled slightly.

“I...I don’t think this Ethan dude is my soulmate.”

Abed’s face was starting to hurt from keeping his eyebrows furrowed for so long. “What do you mean?”

Troy paused and took a deep breath before looking into Abed’s eyes. “I think that- I think that you’re my soulmate.” The confused boy opened his mouth to say something, but Troy wasn’t done. “I know it doesn’t make sense but like, you said that we can choose who we end up with and- and no one makes me feel the way you do. I don’t think I’d like Ethan as much as you, even if I met him.”

His face was red, and his heart was beating out of his chest as he watched Abed process what he just said. 

“Cool. Cool, cool, cool. I like you too, Troy. I don’t know about all this soulmate stuff, but calling you that feels...nice.” Abed smiled, and it was really fucking corny, but Troy felt like he was melting as he breathed out a laugh of relief.

“Does this mean we’re boyfriends?” Troy felt bold as he asked, and immediately regretted it when Abed looked at him without saying anything for a few seconds. He was gonna retract his statement when Abed smiled again and nodded.

“I think this would make us boyfriends. A kiss would be appropriate too.” Abed said thoughtfully, thinking about the dramatic love confessions in movies he’s seen. Troy laughed and leaned in a bit, waiting for Abed to do the same before they were moving in sync.

For a moment, they were just leaning against each other, foreheads touching, before Troy kissed Abed. It was short and sweet and just like in the movies, they both pulled away smiling and a little breathless.

“That was nice...soulmate.” Troy whispered.

-

“Abed and I have an announcement.” Troy said loudly, a smile on his face as he glanced over at Abed before facing the group again. Britta leaned in, interested as Shirley shook her head.

“Troy and I are living together.” Shirley sighed in relief and Annie stuttered out an, “Oh, of course!” When the shock that dissolved into congratulations stopped, Abed continued.

“We’ve also declared each other soulmates. We’re dating now.” They brought their entwined hands out from under the table and rested them on top of it, looking at each other sweetly.

Another round of shock arose before everyone was congratulating them again, Shirley too, although the most surprised. Even Jeff, who didn’t look up from his phone earlier offered a smile and a thumbs up.

Britta was in tears as she said, “I am so happy for you guys. I’m ready to become an even better ally to support you two.” Troy and Abed thanked her, while the rest of the group rolled their eyes collectively. 

The rest of the meeting was spent pretending to study. While Troy and Abed played games of footsie, messed with each other's hands, and giggled quietly, the rest of the group- besides Jeff- tried their best to stare without looking like they were.

Troy was glad his soulmate was Abed, and Abed was glad his was Troy.

-❤️-

**Author's Note:**

> hope u enjoyed haha follow me on twitter @fentyjasi


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